Intelligent Design

Man’s quest for God’s throne.

Photo by Michael Dziedzic on Unsplash

If you go to the last book in the Bible and begin reading you discover a series of strange pictures. They are written down by Jesus’s disciple John who is also credited as being the author of the Gospel of John along with three letters to churches or individuals in churches.

I’m not a biblical scholar and so my purpose for writing about all of this is not with the intent to be an absolute authority on Bible facts, but I am wanting to at least invite you into the waters of the Bible’s content for yourself.

If you read this last book, and there is a pronounced blessing for doing so found in its first chapter, go into it willing to accept mystery.

What I mean by this is keep reading, don’t stop, just because you can’t make sense of all of it, because you will make sense of much of it. And then as you continue to live life these images will come back to you. Personally, I believe this will be the Holy Spirit using this material, along with everything else you read in the Bible to speak truth and insight into your life.

Ironically, many people express a desire for God to speak to them and yet won’t read or study.

I don’t think that’s how God has set it up.

There is a humbling necessary it seems to me that God desires of those he will take deeper into his confidence.

Also he wants to equip us for service to others more than he wants to just tell us interesting things.

In other words, the purpose of Bible study is not just to enable us to know more information, but to live better practical and useful lives as we serve others around us.

My purpose for writing to you today is to introduce you to a particular character in the Book of Revelation called the beast.

Chapter 13 talks a great deal about, not one, but two beasts and the last verse says this

This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.

Revelation 13:18 (ESV)

Here is what I want to make clear. Not who the beast is, but that the beast is a man.

What sort of man is described here as a beast?

A man who has lost his humanity.

He has degraded himself to the level of an animal, but not just any normal animal, to a corruption beneath even this.

This beast has the desire to destroy humanity in order to injure, even destroy God, if that were possible.

Also through reading you will come to see that the beast is receiving power from a dragon. This is Satan. In other words to become a beast described in this book means an allegiance to God’s enemy.

But this is all a fantasy right?

Sorry to break it to you but beasts are real.

Sadly this guy didn’t read to the end of the book. God wins. Don’t lose your humanity. Man’s soul is sacred to God. Stay on his side.